EMPLOYMENT RISES BUT JOBS RECOVERY MAY BE STUMBLING

I am City A.M's deputy editor, having joined the newsroom in late 2010 as an economics reporter.

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Julian Harris

EMPLOYMENT rose again in May, official figures revealed yesterday, yet there were worrying signs for chancellor George Osborne that the labour market recovery could be facing a slowdown.

While employment rose by 50,000 in the three months to May, this was significantly lower than the 88,000 added in the three months to April, while claims for unemployment benefit jumped at their fastest rate for two years.

Unemployment measured 7.7 per cent, down 26,000 to 2.45m in the three months to May.